Where to Stay - The Easy Guide to Your First Walt Disney World Visit 2015 - page 92

Second, there's a group of half a dozen or so hotels in the Downtown Disney Resort
Area. While their prices may initially seem attractive, high resort and parking fees typically
push the price up by $30 or more per night. The Downtown Disney Resort Area isn't con-
venient to anything but shopping, and these hotels have their own, often disappointing,
park transportation. Opinions of these hotels vary and change, but none but the Hilton has
a track record of strong reviews.
None of these non-Disney hotels participate in the Disney Dining Plan, in Disney's Ma-
gical Express, or in MagicBands. At press time, among them, only guests at the Swan or
Dolphin are able to book FastPass+ 60 days ahead of arrival. All others can only book 30
days ahead.
• Guests at Shades of Green, the Swan and the Dolphin, and the Hilton get to parti-

cipate in the Extra Magic Hours program. No other non-Disney owned hotels be-
sides these four offer the Extra Magic Hours program.

• Guests at the Swan and Dolphin use the Disney transportation system for travel to

the theme parks.

Jim's Gems
by Jim Korkis
Architect Michael Graves' concept for the Walt Disney World Dolphin resort was a
tropical island formed by a sudden underwater volcano and earthquake. When the is-
land emerged from under the sea, it lifted dolphins out of the water, and these are the
nautical dolphins on the roof. A mountain thrust upward to the sky is the reason for
the banana leaves painted along the side of the building to suggest a tropical jungle.
The waves of water from this event splashed up onto the Walt Disney World Swan,
which is why the waves are painted on the side of that adjacent hotel.

Off-Property Hotels and Vacation Homes
An off-site stay may remain attractive due to significantly lower prices, especially when
considering the cost for a family of five to stay on property. While it's theoretically possible
for a family of five to stay in the Murphy bed roomat Caribbean Beach or Riverside, we're
still talking about five people sharing a single bathroom and 314 square feet of total space.
Disney's idea of a moderately priced family suite at Art of Animation starts at $303 per
night and skyrockets up to $514/night over the holidays.
However, staying off-site presents another set of costs and challenges. First, any sched-
uled shuttle transportation from most off-site resorts can be as weak as one bus in the morn-
ing and one bus at night. These times are often rigid and inconvenient, whether the bus
arrives after park opening or departs long before the night-time entertainment or the park
closes. Miss the bus and it's an expensive cab ride. Off-site guests often rent cars, but that
reduces convenience and increases costs. Parking at the theme parks is $17 per day (due
only once per day, if you keep your receipt), in addition to potential parking costs back at